Hogan backs bill to strip parental rights from rapists

Gov. Larry Hogan announced his support Friday for a bill that would allow a woman who gets pregnant after being sexually assaulted or raped to strip her attacker of parental rights. The leaders of both the House of Delegates and the state Senate are co-sponsoring the legislation.

As far back as 2007, Del. Kathleen Dumais, a Democrat who represents part of Montgomery County, has been sponsoring a version of this bill, but it has consistently failed. Last year, it came close, but the legislature ran out of time on the last day of the session.

Hogan said it should be the first thing lawmakers tackle when they return to Annapolis next week. He pledged to sign it when it gets to his desk.

“No rapist should be allowed to maintain their right as a parent, and no victim should ever be forced to interact with their attacker,” he said.

The bill has been controversial in the past because it doesn’t require a criminal conviction to take away parental rights. But Dumais emphasized that the bill simply creates a process through which a judge can make the decision.

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The leaders of the General Assembly voted Tuesday to update the body’s sexual harassment policy for both elected officials and staff in light of complaints lodged in other statehouses around the country.

The new policy requires an annual report that will reveal the number of harassment reports made each year. For each allegation of sexual harassment, the Department of Legislative Services’ Human Resources Manager will have to identify the type of harassment and how it was handled. The report won’t contain any names.